As is well known and understood, in-line skating boots of this type can cost anywhere from fifty dollars to several hundreds of dollars. As is also well known and understood, many persons prefer ice skating to roller skating, while others enjoy both types of recreational activities. For those people falling into the latter category, an additional expense arises in presently having to purchase a pair of ice skates to indulge in that type of activity--and, furthermore, possible pairs of hockey skates and figure skates when engaging in those sports. Thus, and at the very least, where the individual enjoys ice skating and wishes to partake in that sport, a second pair of ice skates--either hockey or figure--needs to be purchased. Where the individual wishes to participate in both forms of ice skating, then two pairs of ice skates are required, beyond the cost of the in-line roller skate. What with the comparably high prices for these ice skates as with the in-line roller skate, the skating enthusiast is thus called upon to spend several hundreds of dollars to fulfill their skating desires.
Obviously, it would be highly attractive if these skates could somehow be made interchangeable, one with another, so that only one pair of in-line boots need be purchased, and where the user can simply change from wheels to blades, and vice-versa, whenever desired.